This Kale Almond Vegan Pesto makes a wonderful alternative to traditional basil pesto plus it’s cheaper to make & it’s dairy free. Stir through freshly cooked pasta for a super fast & nutritious meal!
This recipe for Kale Almond Vegan Pesto was originally posted in April last year, a week or two after I started my website. I have been making it regularly since then and it has evolved a little for the better over time.
I decided that I should update this post to reflect that and also retake the photos because, quite frankly, the original ones were absolutely terrible! My photography, although still not perfect, has improved considerably since my early days shooting with just my phone and I really wanted to do this delicious vegan pesto justice, by making it look a lot more attractive than it did in my earlier photos!
Kale seems to be one of those things that you either love or hate. I love it and really enjoy the distinct flavour of this delicious pesto.
This Vegan Pesto combines:
- fresh kale
- garlic
- a little nutritional yeast
- olive oil
- almonds
- And it takes all of a few minutes to make.
HOW TO MAKE VEGAN PESTO
SEE MY VIDEO FOR A VISUAL GUIDE. FOR INGREDIENTS & FULL INSTRUCTIONS PLEASE SEE THE RECIPE CARD AT THE END OF THIS POST
Making Vegan Pesto is just as easy as making regular non-vegan pesto is. In fact pesto is one of the easiest recipes you can make period.
Here’s how:
STEP 1
Add all of the ingredients, reserving abut half of the almonds for later, to a food processor.
STEP 2
Process until as smooth as you want it to be.
STEP 3
Check the seasoning and add a little more olive oil or a little water to think if required.
STEP 4
Add the reserved almonds and pulse until they are chopped into chunky, texturized pieces.
STEP 5
Transfer to a jar and store in the fridge.
HOW TO SERVE VEGAN PESTO
I love this pesto served with pasta but there are lots of other ways to use vegan pesto:
- Try it in my Creamy Vegan Pesto Pasta Salad
- Use it on pizza instead of pizza sauce, or use it as well as pizza sauce, dolloped all over the top
- Spread in sandwiches or wraps before filling
- Fill homemade ravioli with it
- Top grain, pasta or rice bowls with it
- Use in panini
- Try it in a baked sweet potato with some cashew cheese. So good!
- Toss through steamed new potatoes
- Use it to flavour soups and stews
This Kale Almond Vegan Pesto is deep green with flecks of chunky, crunchy almonds. It tastes great freshly made but tastes even better after a few days in the fridge. I store it in a little mason jar and it is then ready for a quick meal at the drop of a hat. It also freezes very well.
Enjoy folks!
Kale Almond Pesto
Ingredients
- 7-8 large Kale Leaves
- 5 tablespoons Extra Virgin Olive Oil (if you prefer not to use oil you can sub this for water but you won't get quite as good a consistency or flavour)
- 3 large Garlic Cloves (add more or less depending on how much you like)
- 4 tablespoons Nutritional Yeast
- 70g / ½ Cup raw Almonds
- Salt
- Pepper
- water to thin as necessary
Instructions
- Wash the kale and strip the leafy parts from the stems. Discard your stems or save them in a bag in the freezer with other veggie trimmings to make your own homemade veggie stock.
- Add the kale, olive oil, garlic nutritional yeast and roughly half of the almonds to a food processor or blender and process until as smooth as you would like it.
- Season with salt and pepper to taste and add more olive oil or a few drops of water to thin if you prefer a thinner pesto.
- Add the remaining almonds and pulse until they are chopped but not too small. A nutty, chunky texture is really good!
Long time vegan, creator of A Virtual Vegan & author of the book 
Karen Haworth says
Just made this as a filling for tortellini. I thought I would have to add fresh basil For flavor. I was wrong. Great recipe…I will let you know how the tortellini turns out! My only addition.was crushed red pepper because I love it!
A Virtual Vegan says
I’m really pleased you are liking the pesto. I can imagine how good that tortellini will be. My mouth is watering at the thought. Enjoy!
Lucile says
Hi,
I just made the recipe (without the nutritional yeast because I didn’t have any on hand so I put in some capers and a squeezed lemon’s juice instead). The texture and colour are great, however there is a very bitter aftertaste that is very off-putting especially for the kids. First taste is fresh and green and immediately after, comes a very bitter flavour.
Does the fact of letting it sit in the fridge a couple days make it less bitter ? Any tips otherwise to counterbalance the bitterness ?
Thanks !
Melanie McDonald says
Kale does have a pungent taste when it’s blended up raw. That is balanced with the cheesiness of the nutritional yeast and the flavour of the almonds though. They all balance each other out nicely. The nutritional yeast is a BIG part of this recipe. It just isn’t the same without it. Capers have a salty, sharp taste and lemon juice is sharp so you probably haven’t done yourself any favours by adding them instead. It’s not a good balance.
The kale flavour does mellow a little over a couple of days in the fridge when made as instructed, but as you haven’t followed the recipe and the balance of flavours is off, I can’t say whether yours will improve or not.
The nutritional yeast would really help make it more appealing to your kids palates, but bear in mind that kale isn’t the most kid friendly ingredient to begin with, (unless they happen to be real lovers of it which most kids aren’t).
Betsy says
Can’t wait to try it! I’ve tried several of your recipes and they’ve all been a hit!
A Virtual Vegan says
I’m so glad you are enjoying my recipes Betsy! I hope you enjoy the pesto too :O)
Allie says
Would you be able to suggest something to replace the olive oil?
A Virtual Vegan says
Olive oil gives it great flavour and a creamy consistency. You could just use water but it will affect the texture and taste. Using something to replace the oily creaminess would be best. I think avocado might work or some cooked white beans. Bear in mind that I haven’t tried doing this myself though but it should work out fine. Hope that helps :0)
Allie says
Thank you so very much! I look forward to trying out this recipe <3
Priua says
I can not tell you in words how exotic this pesto is looking…. So refreshing…..
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you so much! It makes a lovely meal :0)
diversivore says
Very cool (and very vibrant!) Does the nutritional yeast stand in well for parmesan? I do looooove pesto, but it’d be nice to have a dairy-free version to work with.
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you.The green colour is just great isn’t it? It’s never going to taste exactly like parmesan but the nutritional yeast does do a pretty good job of giving a hint of cheesiness.
Jacqueline Rose says
Beautiful photos! I like that you kept both versions to show your progression as a blogger! :)
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you!
Cathy Brak says
This looks like a great recipe that I must try. I’m pinning it, too. Good job on the photos! I need to do that, too.
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you! I have many more that need a face lift too ;0)
Teresa says
This sounds delicious! I love that pesto has moved beyond basil and pine nuts.
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you! Pine nuts are so expensive here so I try not to use them often!
Flavour and Savour @flavourandsavour.com says
This looks so good, and I have kale in my garden that survived our mild West Coast winter. BTW we’re almost “neighbours” :)
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you! We are so lucky with weather on the west coast. Are you on the island?
Flavour and Savour @flavourandsavour.com says
Yes, just north of you in Cowichan
A Virtual Vegan says
Pretty close then. Hi ‘nearly’ neighbour!
Redawna says
Wow! I have a huge Kale fan, this pesto looks fabulous. Can’t wait to try it.
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you! Let me know what you think :0)
janet @ the taste space says
Congratulations, your photography has really improved in such a short time. I can’t wait to have basil growing in my backyard this summer to be able to make this. :)
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you! And you won’t be needing your basil for this…It’s kale! lol
Patricia says
Hey. Love this. ?
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you!
A Virtual Vegan says
Thank you! I have a few more to update. It’s so hard getting the time when you’re constantly trying to create new recipes. I’m sure you know how it feels! Lol